The King Archer is going all-out as he tries to give the title back to La Salle
After a storied UAAP career, Jeron Teng enters the final stage of his collegiate career. His remaining UAAP games will define what legacy he will leave at the De La Salle University.
Teng, a one-time UAAP champion, last tasted gold back in the 76th season of the UAAP — defeating his brother Jeric and the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers in three grueling games. However, in his next two seasons, the product of Xavier High School suffered heartbreak after heartbreak.
But now that he has returned to the Finals, Teng could not hide his excitement, finding relief that he is now back in the big dance.
“Sobrang excited ako dahil kasi I’m down to my last two to three games,” the 22-year-old, who is averaging 17.5 points, said on Wednesday evening.
“This is going to be special because, personally, I’m trying to give La Salle a championship in my final year. I need to do whatever it takes, same with the whole team.”
And if one more championship is not enough motivation for them, they are facing arch-rivals Ateneo de Manila University in the Finals — the same school that with which a championship had his brother, and the same team that handed them their first and only loss of the season. For Teng, that game had humbled them and made them feel vulnerable — something they hadn’t felt during the first 12 games of the season.
“Maganda rin na Ateneo kasi they beat us last game and we have something to prove pa. I think we’re going to show it sa Finals,” the 6-foot-3 forward said.
Entering the last stage of the tournament, Teng shared that they had pushed themselves to the limit during practices to at least not feel rusty come Saturday.
“We’ve been practicing really hard, as in really, really hard. Yung first two days after the semifinals was the hardest. But even after that we’ve been training each day kasi hindi pa namin alam kung sino makakalaban namin.
“It was tougher than our previous practices. Pahirap siya ng pahirap just like our season,” he added.
And Teng knows that it will all be worth it.
